Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-08-21
PART III.

SAubnoT Vi Iluudh h0iSioesooPSt A'S
Sensation of the Summer" etc,
PART II.
From Frank Ford in Boston, to Prof. Mercer
in Chicago.
Dear Prof.--My mother is dead.
Work and worry killed her. 1t is
useless for me to tell you how feel /;
you will know. | have not lost my
sight, but l am unable to use my
eyes. l cannot afford to employ an
amanuensis, and in consequence l
have been compelled to abandon my
profession. l am going out to Califor-
mia. think shall like roughing it
better than anything could do East !;
and ever since / have known that
Nellie was buried on the Pacific Slope,
I have had longing to be near her
grave. If can manage it l shall see
you in Chicago. if not, shall write
you as soon as reach Los Angeles.
From Frank Ford in San Gabriel to Carl Beck
in Boston.
Dear Beck-I arrived here two
weeks ago. My journey out was tedi-
GUS and disagreeable. came in the
emigrant car, which was packed with
not over-nice foreigners. On my way,
stopped at Chicago to see Prof. Mer-
Ger. He is in the best of h ,alth and
never looked better. l am b. lping on
a ranch in the San Gabriel Valley, one
of the most beautiful and cultivated
sections of Southern California. With
its extensive orange groves and vine
yards it presents a fadeless aspect OF
vivid green. The climate is unexcep-
table, and the water which gushes
down from the mountains in crystal
streams is pure and plentiful. l have
not yet become acclimated, but l am
feeling much stronger than did East
With the exception of irrigating which
is monotonous, l do not mind the
work. AS soon as | can, want to re-
sumo my pen. When / do not write,
l am like fish out of water.
: From Carl Beck in Boston TO Frank Ford in
San Gabriel.
Dear Ford-It is my opinion that in
future you had better let literature
alone. You have struggled bravely,
Out NOu IldNC IJOfl
be otfened, but you possess neither
talent nor genius, and you are not
methodical enough to supply their
places with work. The best thing you
can do is to make yourself rich and
important in Southern California.
From Frank Ford in San Gabriel to Carl Beck
i'll Boston.
Dear Beck-When at two-and-thirty
Voltaire was advised by his friends to
abandon literature, he said nothing
but went on as he had done before.
shall follow his example.
From Frank ord in San Gabriel, to Prof
Mercer in Chicago
Dear Pr0fessor-I am living on
grapes, which are now at their height.
1t is astonishing how many one can
consume in a day. They are the most
efficient cure of which l know for
nervous prostration. Since | have
commenced to eat them, l feel like
another man. l spend all my leisure
moments, which to be sure are not
many, at the old San Gabriel Mission.
independent of the fact that Nellie
sleeps among its dead, the place has
peculiar charm for me. The exterior
of the sanctuary, which has stood for
an hundred years, resembles the rug
ged outline of fortification, while the
Worm-eaten doors and copperas-cov-
cred bells, which are suspended ut one
of the weather-beaten extremities, at
test to the antiquity of the structure.
Within the walls are cracked and dis
colored, and the paintings and altar
decorations are time-worn ani primi-
tive. | could stand for hours in the
quiet church and gaze upon the holy
family and the burning tapers which
in the chancel remain as an enduring
memorial to the good fathers, whom
in the early history of the country,
made for themselves so immortal a
place.
From Mrs. Archer, in New York, to Frank
Ford, in San Gabriel.
Mu Dear Friend:-I was much graf
fled by the tone of your last letter.
Evidently you are improved both in
health and spirits. At first l was
afraid that the nearness OF your be-
loved dead would be depressing, but
it seems to have had an opposite ef-
feet, can understand the influence.
L am never so happy, as when for a
while, can steal away alone to visit
Ned's grave. | am greatly troubled
about Mr.. p. He is i'll again; his old
enemy, the gout, has assailed his
stomach, and his case is beginning to
look serious.
From Frank in San Gabriel to Mrs. Archer in
New York:
NM Dear Friend:-I have met with
another disappointment. AS soon as
nv eyes improved enough to permit
me to resume my pen, wrote an es-
saw upon the early history of Los An
geies. | described the arrival of the
twelve Spanish soldiers who founded
the city. / gave detailed account of
the romantic customs OF the aborig-
ines. and with all the skill | could
command drew a pen picture of the
primitive hamlet as it clustered at the
feet of the lofty Sierra Madre. | felt
sure the paper would be accepted, and
when with thanks it was returned to
me was not satisfied; whereupon |
wrote to the editor, requesting him to
inform me what was amiss with it.
to which he briefly responded that
although he had no doubt the article
was original, it was too similar to one
which had recently appeared in his
pages to admit Of publication. This